This season, a handful of designers in Shanghai managed to stay true to their distinctive creative voices amid a challenging market, where many
By the Bund, Paul Smith launched its latest flagship at the Fosun-owned BFC shopping mall. Dongliang, one of the first multibrand fashion boutiques in Shanghai that later migrated to Beijing, finally found its retail home in the market in a quiet, upscale neighborhood. In addition to looks inspired by the Paris-based Chinese painter Site Fu’s surrealist work “Mr. Sandman,” the collection came with subtle nods to Chinese culture as well.
Models walked through the kitchen, living room and bedroom, donning looks that started as well-to-do Swans — polka-dot sets, floral cardigans and gingham dresses, to name a few — but ended as liberated sexual beings in corsets, pussy bow ensembles, lace trimmed cropped shirts and see-through empress dresses, all in black.
Yin’s spring 2025 collection included an actual Chinese hymn as its show note, which was a brave move on the designer’s part — religious content, despite its prevalence, has always existed under the radar in a largely atheist society. The brand, which has found success with monobrand stores in Shanghai and Hangzhou, as well as online, is now ready to win over the mass market.‘s runway show gathered all of the designer’s muses — his fashion and art world friends; industry mavens, such as Harrods’ Sarah Myler and Mo&Co’s Jenny Kim, and, interestingly, fashionable mother figures, including his very own.